Mirage of Blaze Murder File: Definition of Death
by Nadare
Summary: A Mirage of Blaze murder mystery. When Kadowaki Ayako is murdered, the case is left in the questionable hands of Flame who has to solve the case with Takahashi Ryosuke's assistance. Will that be helpful or a hindrance? Previously Uploaded.


_Author's Note: This was horribly amusing to write. Maybe it's the idea of having to tango with someone who knows all or the restrain one would have to show in order to appear sane. In any case, the Ryosuke depicted below has left the racing circuit, and opted for a career as a detective though he has to amuse himself in some ways._

[Written off and on from October 10th to October 11th of 2005]  
[Last edited 8/14/15]

Disclaimers: I don't own One Piece, Initial D or Mirage of Blaze. Even if I did, it wouldn't matter much in the end. This story still would have been created out of randomness.

 _ **Anime Murder Files**_  
 _Case No. 13: Definition of Death_

It was with a sigh Flame poured over the case file she'd been handed earlier in the afternoon. She'd been caught by their boss, Jake Johnson, in the middle of attempting to sneak out of the office to the local movie theater. She'd been bored of the murders occurring as of late. Kaige was currently on loan to another county, to investigate a recent string of food poisoning. Upon leaving, the detective had smiled in a decidedly evil matter, and muttered something about how she should have avoided temptation.

Trusting her partner would be back in due time, Flame eyed the papers in front of her and utterly unimpressed by the lack of imagination the killer had in regards to how he had disposed of his victim, Flame set aside the case file. She twiddled her thumbs, turned towards the ceiling, noticing how pretty it actually was amidst the small cracks that had began to creep from the corners of the room. Having her detective's license reinstated a month ago had been in her favor, but without any interesting cases (or deaths), and with no real fervor in randomly executed mayhem, Flame had become much like a living ghost.

When the door suddenly opened, Flame turned lazily in her chair and watched the Japanese man standing in front of her almost smugly, one arm propped up against the doorframe, and the other casually against his hip before striding forward and placing both hands against the edge of Flame's desk. The man looked oddly familiar, so the detective took a few long moments to examine him, noting the smart black suit, almost almond skin, and the short cropped black hair though what struck her most was the light green eyes. Inside of them was irritation Flame had yet to make comment on his sudden appearance inside her office.

Finally, Flame raised a hand, scratched at an itch that had been bothering her then motioned to the Japanese man. "Yaoi-con 2004?" Blinking as the man's head suddenly hit the desk with a harsh sound, Flame watched as he looked up, blood trickling down from his forehead, and let out a frustrated sound. "Please don't tell me you've already put that hit and run incident of Mount Akira out of your mind?"

Mount Akira…it sounded vaguely familiar, and it took a moment for the pieces to snap into place completely though no expression crossed Flame's face and she let out a breath of air, still utterly unmoved by the proceedings. "Oh yeah, _that_. I'll never forget the bane of those poison suction cup darts. Takahashi Ryosuke, right? Didn't you run get exasperated by the way Kaige and I investigated things and run off to become a detective or something?"

"Yes, exactly!" Eyeing Ryosuke's sudden vigor, Flame begun to feel a bad omen when he extended his hand and grinning smugly announced, "Due to unforeseen complications, until your partner returns, I'm to be her replacement." The world tilted as Flame suddenly leaned too far back in her desk chair. She cursed as part of her head hit the floor, and stood, placing her chair back as it was. She lunged towards Ryosuke's hand and bit a few choice fingers, her own version of handshake.

Wiping the blood from her mouth, Flame gave Ryosuke one last scan and nodded, moving towards the still open door, completely oblivious to the pained expression on Ryuichi's face as well as the tic that started on his forehead. Binding his hand with a handkerchief from his suit pocket, Ryosuke followed after Flame, coming to understand just why Kaige suited the woman perfectly. They were both flipping insane, not to mention violent. Damn peas in a pod really.

"What do you mean you want another case?" Jake asked, raising a brow worriedly at the slightly disheveled appearance of Ryosuke who had only sustained injuries **after** visiting Flame's office. She seemed unaware of the wariness Ryosuke maintained around her. Jake turned his attention back to one of his 'star' detectives as she made reply, "Frankly, I've already figured out the how, why, and whodunit of the murder without even finishing examining the case file. So I won't have to drag my ass out into that cold weather to go to the crime scene, it was Carl.

"Carl Hudson, who killed the Chinese delivery person merely because he never ordered anything from the Chinese restaurant in the first place. Having been irritated by the delivery person's insistence, Carl took hold of the first thing he could lay hands on, and killed the delivery person with a well-placed poke to the head with an umbrella. After realizing he'd killed the delivery person, he then chopped the body into select parts, and cooked and ate them over the course of a week, simply because he had always wanted to become a cannibal.

"The parts Carl didn't eat, he dumped into a nearby land fill along with the Chinese food he had never ordered. Now, is that enough facts for you or do I have to make an effort?" Stupefied, though Ryosuke only crossed his arms and gazed at the proceedings expectedly, Jake handed over a new case file he'd received over the last hour and watched as life seemed to flow back into Flame. Her eyes raked over the report of the murder victim, and sparkles coming to shine around her, Flame skipped out of the office happily, Ryosuke letting out a sigh as he took to following in her wake **again**.

Flame stifled gleeful laughter as she exited the car Ryosuke had driven to the crime scene. Just outside off a major highway, the female detective flipped off an irritated driver as he made use of the detour police officers had set up in preparation for the murder investigation. A wrecked motorcycle rested on the side of the road, a body tangled within the vehicle, scattered pieces of which littered the roadside. Picking up a nearby stick that was sharp, Flame stuck the pieces and after depositing them into a baggie, dumped them near the body where they belonged.

Feeling Ryosuke come to stand over her shoulder, Flame stopped poking body parts that had melded with the motorcycle upon impact with whatever had caused the vehicle to veer from the road. Suppressing her madness as much as she could (considering), Flame cleared her throat and laid a hand against the long brown hair that trailed off into the grass, playing professional detective as much she was able. "Victim was one Kadowaki Ayako, college student by profession though friends claim she often disappeared for days at a time. At what Ayako called her 'night job,' whatever that might be. At approximately 12:37 PM, Ayako, coming back from a friend's house, was stuck by an unidentified object while riding her motorcycle, and what you see before lies as a result."

Unimpressed by Ryosuke's concise summary of events, Flame glanced at the bits of Ayako's flesh that had been untouched by the accident, and resisting the urge to poke, abruptly stood and paced around the body, leaving bloody footprints all over though she paid no mind. "Our lists of suspects?"

"Right. There's her college friends but they've already been interviewed, and discounted as suspects so that just leaves the three men she was commonly seen with," Ryosuke informed, growling as Flame continued to sway this way and that, damaging the crime scene further. Finally having enough of it, he picked Flame up and sat her a good foot away from the body before pulling out his trusty handkerchief, and cleaning the bloody footprints as best he could.

Eyes half-lidded, Flame glared at Ryosuke's back as he continued cleaning the traces she'd left, and aware he'd only get worse the further this investigation continued, contemplated the various ways she could rid herself of him without suspicion. Abruptly, Ryosuke turned and watched Flame as if she'd spoken her thoughts out loud. Turning to watch a car as it passed, Flame glanced back in time to catch the knowledge filled look upon Ryosuke's face.

This job he had taken as detective was merely a game to him, a way to pass the time. Instead of dwelling within the boredom of everyday car racing, the results of said races in which he knew who would prevail even before the drivers raced on the predetermined track. So now, drawing upon the vast knowledge he had at his disposal at any and all times, he was testing Flame, perhaps seeing if she really did deserve her job as a detective, to the point of even delaying Kaige's return in some way.

Well aware of his game now, Flame pulled her jacket tighter around her, and crossed her arms, her butt becoming number the longer it remained against the ground, and continued glaring once Ryosuke had turned to wipe away one last bloody footprint to his left. Finding talk to be of no use since Ryosuke would already know what it was she had to say, Flame stood and headed back to the car, quickening her pace as Ryosuke turned his attention to her. Slipping behind the wheel, she quickly set off to the apartment building listed on Ryuichi's man notes, which Flame had pickpocketed when he so roughly picked her up.

Once at the door of Yoshiki Tachibaba a.k.a. Nobutsuna Naoe's apartment, which was oddly the whole length of the third floor, Flame tapped a foot impatiently as she waited for someone to answer the door, the kick she had delivered onto it having made a loud enough sound for someone to hear. It was another two minutes before the door finally moved, and jumping at the movement, Flame grinned at the attractive older man with slitted eyes through the small space provided between air and the door frame. Despite the suspicious matter in which she'd acted a moment ago, the man opened the door wider and motioned Flame in after seeing her badge.

"Are you Nobutsuna Naoe?" At the nod she received, Flame looked down to the notes Ryosuke had made underneath Naoe's name. _A monk who in is in reality a Possessor from feudal Japan, who is looking into the sudden influx of spiritual activity in this area. He should be treated with care whilst questioning, so as not to place oneself's in a dangerous position._ Slightly confused by the information, Flame shook her head to clear it, and would have asked just where Naoe had been when Ayako had been killed when another man walked into the room, slightly younger than Naoe, and wearing only a towel around his waist.

Effectively distracted, Flame didn't notice she was steadily inching towards the nearly naked man until a rough grip took hold of her arm, and turning, Flame noted the possessive expression upon Naoe's face as well as the warning that any touching of the toweled man would result in some form of pain. Taking a quick glance at Ryosuke's notes, Flame took a guess after jerking her arm out of Naoe's hand. "Ougi Takaya?"

The towel slipping a little on the man's left hip, both Naoe and Flame ogled the flesh that had been revealed until Takaya noticed this, and bristling slightly, with a disapproving look towards Naoe, Takaya left the room, presumably to get clothes on. Flame sighed disappointingly, grinning when she saw Naoe did much the same. She took a seat on a nearby couch and awaited Takaya's return since it would be better to have both men in the room for the interview she would conduct.

Not that it would yield much seeing as Ryosuke probably already knew who murdered Ayako and why. Somewhat deflated, Flame hardly heeded Takaya's reappearance though her eyes did narrow when Takaya looked sideways at Naoe as if unsure of something. Adding her own comment under Ryosuke's notes on the two men, Flame grinned evilly and began her questioning. They didn't react when she announced Ayako had been killed, and curious about this, Flame asked if they had indeed known her.

"Oh, yes, we knew her. It's just her death is somewhat…meaningless," Naoe replied calmly, looking down at his fingernails for a moment to avoid Flame's sudden suspicious look. "But is she really dead? I mean she's not going to pop up in the body of some five year old, hoping to join the fight again, is she?" Takaya countered, squaring Naoe with a look that the older man returned with equal intensity until ultimately shrugging. "Possessors generally do not fight until they are of suitable age. You were an exception considering your position as leader."

"I'm sure," Takaya snapped irritated then realizing Flame was still in the room, he smiled nervously, and motioned for her to continue the line of questioning. "Uh…right, anyway, seeing as you've both got alibis during the afternoon, all that remains is to ask where Shuei Chiaki is located as he doesn't have a permanent address."

"Wait, was Ayako's skull damaged extensively?" Naoe's question surprised Flame, and flashing back on the body she'd viewed just two hours earlier, she vaguely recalled the skull had been slightly crushed, bits of brain matter slipping through a small crack. "Somewhat, why do you ask?" Takaya seemed to have the same question in mind, and with the two sets of eyes staring, Naoe's shoulders tensed slightly. "If her skull sustained enough damage at the moment of death, there's a chance Ayako won't be able to Possess again with all her memories intact."

A beat in which Flame found herself confused again, and Takaya let out a harsh breath before speaking, tone heavy with worry, as well as meaning, "Like me? No…she's got too much to connect her to this world, she's waiting after all…"

"Kagetora-sama…" Throwing up her hands in frustration, Flame quickly stood after crossing off both their names from the small list of suspects. She headed for the door, she would have liked to observe the pair of men longer, just to see if they'd act on the unresolved sexual tension between them, but alas a quick glance backwards revealed they'd broken the moment and moved on. Almost barging straight into Ryosuke as he strode up to the apartment door, Flame stuck out her tongue childishly, and held up the man's mutilated notes.

Ryosuke only sighed, and snatching the pad of paper from Flame, nearly choked when he read the explicit line underneath Takaya and Naoe's crossed-off names. Squaring the smug female detective with wide eyes, Flame smirked and continued out to the elevator at the end of the hall, making Ryosuke quicken his stride as he fought to catch the elevator before its doors closed. Flame stuck an arm between them, and as the doors relented, resisted widening her smirk as Ryosuke stepped into the elevator, muttering his thanks.

"Since you're all knowing, where exactly is Shuei Chiaki?" A bored expression came over Ryosuke's face, and after a moment like he confirming a piece of information from some inner source, he turned to Flame. "He's actually just a mile away, exorcising some spirits in a park. He'll run into a complication in a few minutes though so we have more than enough time to catch up to him."

Curious, Flame wondered just how many of these 'complications' Ryosuke encountered whilst working on a case. Vowing to keep a closer eye on him, just to see if whatever method he used could be uncovered accidentally. Flame closed her eyes, leaned against the back of the elevator, and waited until they had ascended to the ground floor of the apartment building.

The back that presented itself as it paced around Flame's car irritated caused Ryosuke to hurry ahead of Flame while she unhurriedly made her way out of the upscale apartment building, taking Ryosuke's words to heart. Jerking Kaige's left arm, Ryosuke pressed her against the car, glancing back worriedly in case Flame suddenly appeared upon the scene. "I thought I took care of you," he snarled out, noticing the predatory expression of Kaige as she skillfully maneuvered her way out of Ryosuke's grip.

"When it comes to Flame, no one can keep me away. Not even the all knowing," Kaige said simply, a considerable warning to her voice that if Ryosuke tried to interfere in her affairs again, he wouldn't get off with a mere reprimand. Before he could follow the movement, Flame suddenly flew into Kaige, glomping her partner as tightly as she could, already falling into sobs.

"It was horrible, Kaige-chan!" Hic. "I had to play sane! I couldn't even poke…" Hic. "The body the way I wanted to." Sniff. "I couldn't even kill one single person!" As Kaige absorbed that last piece of information, she turned to Ryosuke, absently rubbing a hand over Flame's hair, and glared, pure venom in her eyes. "There, there. I know it's been a traumatic experience for you but we'll soon make this job enjoyable again. …Hey, look, there's an innocent over there just asking to be beaten to death!"

Following Kaige's pointed finger, Flame watched the scantily dressed woman on the sidewalk nearby, and hiccuping slightly, wiped her eyes and pulled a bat from nowhere, advancing upon the innocent faster than Ryosuke would have thought possible. He averted his eyes as Flame made short work of the woman's body, blood spraying this way and that, coating the detective yet she did not seem to mind. Wiping some of the blood with her arm, and seeing the sleeve turn crimson, Flame shrugged and her good mood restored, latched onto one of Kaige's arms and refused to let go, even when Kaige entered the driver's seat of the car.

One very dangerous and interesting drive later, the trio arrived at the park Ryosuke had directed them to where a man with a short ponytail held a hand to his bleeding arm, and tried to ward off an invisible blow, only to fail and fall further to the ground. Grinding his teeth, the man stood and raising his good arm spoke several phrases repeatedly in an odd language, and reaching a climax, was apparently satisfied by what he'd accomplished. He wiped the dust from his pants calmly.

Exchanging a look with Flame, Kaige proceeded towards the man presumed to be Shuei Chiaki, her partner still on her left arm, sometimes nuzzling the limb offhandedly though her attention was mostly focused on Chiaki. He was the last suspect on their list, and most likely the murderer. Ryosuke stepped in front of the pair just as they reached Chiaki, and after handing the man a first aid kit he'd pulled from the car, flashed his badge.

"I'm Detective Takahashi Ryosuke, these are my two colleagues Detectives Flame Brendan and Kaige Suzumi. We're here on the matter of Kadowaki Ayako's death. Would you mind telling us where you were at 12:37 this afternoon?" His reaction matched that of Naoe and Takaya's, and finding this a bit too coincidental, Flame let go of her partner's arm and awaited his response, her interest in the case renewed. "Oh, yes, I had heard about that.

"However, I was actually visiting someone throughout most of the morning, leaving their apartment at a little past two so I had little to nothing to do Ayako's death…if you want to call it that," Chiaki informed somewhat blandly, suppressing a yawn. "Why is it you and the other two men we visited are completely unbothered about Ayako's demise? She was obviously murdered."

Blinking, Chiaki looked as if the answer should have been obvious, but finally the man smirked, and would have made reply if Ryosuke hadn't stepped in and spoke for him. "Ayako, as well him and the two men Flame visited a little bit ago are all Possessors, meaning even if their body is destroyed, they'll only reincarnate into another body. Once they're of age, they will resume their fight against the Feudal Underworld."

At Chiaki's sound of disbelief, Flame ceased her forehead, trying to piece things together. The utter indifference Naoe and Takaya had displayed upon hearing of Ayako's murder, the meaning underlying the brief spat the pair of men had had in Naoe's apartment as well as the question about Ayako's skull. "So, what you're trying to say is, Ayako, though she was murdered, lives on anyway?" Kaige questioned, paying no mind to Chiaki's continued scrutiny of Ryosuke.

"That's correct. So, even if we find the murderer, most likely an enemy of the Uesugi, if we manage to convict him, he'll only take on another body and continue on as he was."

"Which makes this entire investigation meaningless," Kaige concluded, irritated that she'd been handed the answers to this case so easily, and so soon after joining it. Ryosuke nodded, and patting Chiaki's shoulder headed to the car, missing the sudden steel determination in Chiaki's gaze before he strode forward, pulling a dagger from his boot, slashing out at Ryosuke. He dodged easily, and slamming the passenger door, watched Chiaki as he growled to himself and finally stalked off unhappily.

Turning to Kaige, Flame asked the question on both of the detectives' minds, pouting, "Does this mean Ryosuke's un-killable?" Kaige seemed to think on the matter for a moment then nodded. "If he's all knowing, then he'll see any attempt on his life before it comes. Dammit!"

Exiting Jake Johnson's office, Kaige let out a long sigh, which Flame echoed as she came to stand beside her. Explaining the futility of the Ayako case had been far more difficult than expected though admittedly having Ryosuke present helped immensely. He was able to explain a certain matter when Kaige and Flame faltered. Finally, Jake had seen the light, and grumbling had congratulated the detectives on a job well done before officially closing the case. He'd also assigned Ryosuke to another precinct in the city, choosing to ignore Kaige and Flame's cheers.

Now, each of the detectives took a seat in Kaige's office, and eyeing Zoro napping in the corner, Flame grinned at her partner from her perch on the desk edge, kicking her legs back and forth. "What were the complications you ran into anyway? Ryosuke wasn't forthcoming with any details."

Her eyes flashing red for a moment, Kaige leaned back in her desk chair. "Oh, well, after I pinned the poisonings on someone else, I started to drive back, but my car battery inexplicitly died along the way. After having it towed to a nearby auto shop, I had to wait two hours while they replaced the battery. On my way again, I suddenly ran into a traffic jam, and by the time it cleared, I was already three hours late getting back to the office.

"Not wanting to risk any other chances with my car after hearing where you were and **who** you were with, I took the bus which broke down after only fifteen minutes. With no other transportation available I trusted, I just decided to walk, and so I did, despite the numerous people who happened to fall into my path along the way. How many damn sick people are in this city anyway?" Kaige informed, unaware of the eye that Zoro had opened halfway during her words.

"Finally, I arrived in the apartment building parking lot where Ryosuke tried to scare me off, but having left you to your lonesome for two days, I figured you were in sore need of me." Letting out a light sigh as Flame leaned across the desk, and hugged Kaige gratefully, Kaige suddenly looked about, searching. "By the way, where is Sanji? He's usually somewhere in the office but I didn't see him."

Smiling sheepishly, Flame eased her legs into the desk completely, and sat Indian style. "Uh, yeah…well, with you gone, and since you usually act as a buffer to my violent nature, I kind of snapped and killed whoever approached me even if they came to me with no ill intentions. After the 27th kill, Sanji decided he'd rather go hide in the closet of my apartment than come into the office to work. I didn't trust myself either so I thought it a good idea. Zoro here slept in your office the whole time you were gone, well aware I wouldn't dirty your office with blood."

"Smart man," Kaige commented, briefly patting the swordsman on the head much like one would a dog though Zoro didn't seem to mind the touch at all. "I promise if I go anywhere, I'll take you with me since separating us seems to be just asking for trouble," Kaige added, flashing Flame a grin. Nodding her assent, Flame briefly saluted her partner, and wandered off to collect Sanji from her bedroom closet, her blood lust under control once again.

The grin fading once Flame had exited her office, Kaige resumed patting Zoro's head, more for comfort than anything else, and lifting a photo of Ryosuke from her desktop, Kaige's eyes glowed red. Her mouth curved into a cruel smirk. "If ever we meet again, Takahashi. If ever we meet…" Evil laughter drifted out of the detective's office, and any that neared skittered away quickly, scared of what such a laugh meant.

 _The End_


End file.
